Mark's Early Autumn Cheeses, Wine, and Beer Pairings:

California Crottin and
Sauvignon Blanc from Quincy

Montgomery’s
English Farmhouse Cheddar and Samuel Smith’s India Ale

Columns to Savor
Mark Todd

Picnic Cheeses: Fiscalini Cheddar with Chemay Ale, and Lesendairy Blue Roomkass with J. Lohr Beaujolais Wine.

Picnic Cheeses that Celebrate Summer.

Spring Cheeses: White Stilton with Lemon Zest and German Hefe_Weisse Beer, and Blue Stilton with Australian Tokay Wine.

Irish Cheeses: Cashel Irish Blue Cheese and Late Harvest Zinfandel, and Cahill's Porter Irish Cheese and Guinness Stout.

Brie de Meanx with Gruet Sparkling NV Brut and French Morbier Cheese with Saison Farmhouse Ale.

Aged Gouda Cheese and Belgian Dubbel Beer, and Fourme d’Ambert and
Côtes du Rhone Wine.

Cheeses of the Alps: Allgäuer Bergkäse with Alsatian Pinot Blanc, and Appenzeller Cheese with Bock Beer.

Cheeses of the Alps: Chiantino Cheese and Altbier Beer, and Hirtenkäse Cheese and Gewürztraminer Wine.

Spanish Wines and Cheeses.

History of Beer, Cider, and Mead: Cheese's Other Companion Beverages with two pairings.

Read more about
Mark Todd.

Get more information on great Alpine and specialty cheeses at Fond O' Foods.

Cheese Expert
Mark Todd

Classic Pairings from France and England

This month we explore two very traditional pairings; one French, one English. Can you guess which one is the beer and which is the wine? It is not by accident that England drinks beer and France drinks wine; the reason lies in a combination of history and nature.

England hasn’t always been a nation of beer drinkers. In a brief period of warmer-than-usual temperatures in Europe between about 700 and 1300 A.D., England was able, for the first time in known history, to grow grapes for wine. They were so successful, in fact, that by the end of this era French vintners were protesting to their king that England was undercutting their markets with better wines at a cheaper price!

This all came to an end with the onset of the Little Ice Age in about 1300. Temperatures plummeted across Europe and the entire northern hemisphere for 550 years, until about 1850. This climate shift brought about massive political and cultural changes in societies across the Continent. Most importantly to our story: in England, grapes were doomed. Once wine became an imported (read: expensive) commodity, the English went back to farming a crop they knew would grow—barley. Meanwhile the French, whose climate was a little more forgiving, stuck to wine.

What does all this agricultural history have to do with our beverage enjoyment today? As it happens, quite a bit. During the Little Ice Age, North America was colonized predominantly by Northern Europeans, who brought their preference for beer and liquor with them to the New World.  It’s no wonder the art of winemaking—and wine drinking—has only recently taken root and begun to flourish in America. (A development for which we can all be very grateful!)

This month as I savor these two spectacular pairings, each rooted in its own European tradition, yet perfectly pleasing to my American palate, I find myself wondering: what will be our culinary legacy 500 years from now? If history is any indication, only time—and Mother Nature—will tell.

Cheese and Wine
Pairing

California
Crottin Cheese and Sauvignon Blanc Wine from Quincy

The Cheese
Redwood Hill Goat Dairy’s California Crottin is one of my two all-time favorite goat cheeses from the United States (stay tuned for the other, coming in December!). This treasure is an homage to France’s Crottin de Chavignol. Pronounced crow-TAHN, the name of this cheese is worth looking up in your French-English dictionary. You’ll find the term refers to the, um, tangible output of the noble horse or hard-working mule. I assure you this is a reference to the shape—not the aroma or flavor—of this gorgeous goat cheese!

The Cheese
Known today as “the world’s single most popular cheese,” cheddar was developed centuries ago in the southern English district of Somerset, specifically, in and around the village of Cheddar. Following World War Two, the English dairy industry saw massive consolidation and mechanization, and almost all their traditional farmstead cheese makers were lost. Then in the 1970’s a group called Neil’s Yard began working with the few small farms that were still struggling to survive as traditional cheese producers. Neil’s Yard helped these operations develop new markets and products. Thanks to these efforts, a number of historical cheese operations have been restored to prosperity, including one of my personal favorites, James Montgomery’s.

Created for Barbara Admas
Beyond Wonderful
by Cheese Expert,
Mark "The Cheese Dude" Todd.

Barbara Adams Beyond Wonderful features large recipe collections of full-proof quick and easy recipes, classic family favorites, global cuisine, and party ideas. Get illustrated cooking tips and techniques,cooking for beginners, food features, and expert advice on baking, cheese, produce, and wine.

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